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Our Route through MALI. Covered approx. 3400km on the motorcycles, of which 1100 were dirt/sand. |
May 25, 2008. We enter Mali at the Faramara Border Post from Burkina Fasa and... |
...arrive in DJENNE just in time for a massive sand storm to hit us.
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These pictures were taken from the roof top of our Auberge. The before picture... |
... and the after picture. |
Here we can still see the mosque in the background... |
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...and then it disappears and the sun is swallowed up by sand clouds.
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After a couple of hours the storm has moved on & the locals return outside. |
We slept on the roof top of the Chez Baba as it is too hot to sleep inside. |
May 26, 2008. At 7am our guide "the teacher" picks us up & ...
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...we start wandering through tiny alley ways. This is the first Moroccan house built in Djenne. |
Typical example of a Moroccan style window. |
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Goats, cows and donkeys live among the locals. |
Djenne is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. |
We walk past several madrassas, which are schools where young children learn the Qur'an. |
Houses are built out of mud and straw. |
Every year before the rainy season, which starts in June and ends in September,... |
... locals repair their houses with this mud. |
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An example of mud/straw bricks to build houses. |
The upkeep of these mud houses is never ending, as the rain slowly washes away the mud. |
The house of the traditional chief. |
Across from this well maintained house is ... |
... a water well. There is no piping to take care of the sewer, it all runs down the middle of the streets. |
These wooden carts are used to haul material and goods. |
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Children are playing in the dust,... |
...feet, hands and faces... |
...covered in mud... |
...all along smiling and reaching for our hands.
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We purchase a bogolan (mud-cloth) from Pama Sinatoa. |
More household animals living in midst of the houses. |
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Without maintenance these mud brick houses deteriorate. |
Locals use this substance called Gum Arabic to wash clothes.
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It comes from a tree. |
We enter the market area. Ruby purchases some breakfast.
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In every country we try the food in the food stalls. |
We get our first view of the largest mud-built structure in the World.
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The Djenne Mosque. |
Locals are setting up for the best market in Africa (our opinion).
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Every Monday the sleepy settlement of Djenne hosts one of the most impressive markets. |
On the roof top of someone's home we get a better look at the mosque & market. |
At a female madrassa we are shown a verse from the Qur'an written on a wooden board. |
One of the entrances to the Mosque. |
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Another entrance. |
Main entrance to the mosque. |
Thousands of these fish (burnt fish as Mike calls them) are sold at the market. |
A closer look at the fish. |
Goats are being sold here. |
This is a typical picture of an African woman carrying her child on the back... |
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...and other products on her head. |
Locals selling melons. |
The women in this area of Mali have their mouths tattooed black as seen here. |
By 11am the empty area is now covered by stalls. |
We get on the roof top of another house directly opposite the mosque... |
...and in full view of the market. |
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Here we are able to watch people go about their day to day business.
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The energy, vibrancy and smells are difficult to explain unless experienced yourself. |
Thousands of people gather every week for this one day. |
Women in their colorful clothes bartering. |
This picture alone has a range of items being sold. |
Every square inch is taken up by some type of product for sale.
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Ruby, the mosque and the market. |
Bread for sale. |
The people are so very colorful. |
We spent hours in awe, the camera clicking away. |
We will not forget this day. |
A local woman cooking lunch on the roof top. |
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Fresh peanuts and peppers. |
We have not figured out this yet. |
A local woman trying to shade herself from the sun.
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Each picture is unique showing people and customs so very different from what we know in the Western World. |
Rice and melons are sold here. |
This alley mostly sells fruit. |
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It is melon season and these yellow melons can be found everywhere.
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We venture into the midst of the market. |
It does not get any better than this. |
May 27, 2008. We leave Djenne at sun rise and detour to another World Heritage Site. |
The entrance door to the Tomb of Saints Almany Nabo and Almany Kontao.
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We pull up to the ferry at 6:30am... |
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...but it is not yet in operation. Locals make their way through. Too deep for the motorcycles. |
By 7am the ferry takes us across the river. |
From Djenne we ride to Sangha in the DOGON VALLEY and stay at the Hotel Femme Dogon. |
Sleeping yet again on the roof top, as temperatures climb into the high 40Deg Celsius. Night temperature high 30's. |
The turtles did not seem to mind the heat. |
They were part of the scenery. |
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Close up of the turtle. |
Late afternoon we take guided tour of Sangha. The important Baobab tree. |
From the roof top of a house we get a better appreciation ...
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...of the Sangha Ogol do section. |
Drums used during festive rituals. |
Beautiful carved wooden doors can be found almost at every house entrance. |
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Our first stop is the local hospital (Gina). The healing process is based on fetishes. |
The house of women. Women spent (5) days isolated from their family at this house while having their period. |
The Togina (meeting place), the structure is only about 1m high and the roof is covered by at least 2m of straw. |
The hunter%u2019s house. |
Today the tomb of the hunter. |
Another unique carved wooden door. |
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Personal belongings of the hunter... |
...are displayed on the outside of the building. |
These type of doors can be found at almost every house entrance.
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At this point we had picked up... |
...numerous children all fighting for our hands.
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Children here do not ask for money, (sometimes candy),...
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...they are just happy to be walking along with you. |
The Hogan House. |
The old man living here is like the Wiseman of the town, he does not ever leave this compound. |
The towns large fetish (called Lebe). |
This is Kola, given to the elders of the towns. It is a nut that tastes quite horrible and is supposed to suppress hunger. |
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